Best Photo Slide Box to Safely Archive Your Slides — Logan Slide File Review (Video)

For anyone who is unable to watch or listen, I have provided [CC] captions in the video as well as a full text transcript below.

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If you’re looking for something to store all of your 35-millimeter slides in, you should consider checking out the slide file made by a company called Logan.

It’s a very nice all-metal box with a hinged lid, two metal clasps to keep it shut and a little handle to carry it by.

I’m Curtis Bisel from Scan Your Entire Life and I bought three of these because I actually couldn’t find what I thought I was looking for, which were these small, little cardboard boxes that hold maybe 70 or so slides that my dad had been using for many, many years to keep his entire slide collection in.

The Logan Slide File is about US$29.95 a piece. When I bought mine they were $26.95 so they’re not cheap. But almost anything slide-related seems to carry a premium right now in the digital era. But from every slide container I found, this seemed to be the best.

I was very happy to read that this slide file box has been made for about 40 years now and for those who like buying US products, you will be happy to know that they’re all made here in the United States in the City of Bartlett, Illinois.

These really are well-crafted. They feel really sturdy, really well-made. My dad still has one of these built by their other company named Smith-Victor and it’s still in great shape.

My dad had just moved so his entire slide collection had just been unburied. Most of them were all stored in those plastic slide projector carousel trays and then those are stored in a big stack of Bankers Boxes.

So this became a perfect project for my dad and I to get together and transfer all these slides. As you start putting slides in, you realize it’s almost easier to hold the ones that you just put in with one hand while you’re transferring new ones in with your other.

If you don’t, they will tend to want to fall over. Logan included a perforated sheet of cardboard that had little dividers you could punch out. You also get a sheet of paper which is divided into 30 squares.

The idea is to write down a description for each group of slides you have in each quadrant that’s defined by all of your dividers. Once you have it all written out, you could easily tape it to the inside of the lid. For my dad and I, it seemed easier just to line up entire rows of slides.

For those looking for airtight containers, know that these corners have small cracks. I really don’t think it’s a huge deal though. I think the main thing to be concerned about is not having light come in and this does a pretty good job and what’s great about these cardboard boxes that they’re shipped in is that for long term storage, they’re the perfect size to fit in standard size Bankers Boxes that you can find at office stores, even the plastic variety.

I read a bunch of reviews before I bought mine and there were a couple of things that stood out that concerned me. A couple of people said they received manufacturing defects in that the slide rails weren’t perfectly even. So they could put slides in one end but as they got to the other end, it became more narrow where they weren’t parallel and they couldn’t even get slides to go in.

Another negative review I read said that even though Logan claims this slide file can hold 750 slides, they weren’t even able to get 500 to fit.

I’m happy to report that in the three slide file boxes that I bought, slides seem to fit perfectly in my rows. I didn’t seem to have any manufacturing defects and as far as the amount of slides I could store, I think Logan’s claim of 750 is probably right on. In fact in this box, without any dividers, I think the count is 813 slides.

Logan does make three other models of this slide file. So if you’re not watching this video on my Scan Your Entire Life website, check out the link at ScanYourEntireLife.com/YT3 for YouTube video three or if you’re watching this on YouTube, click on the link directly underneath the video.

Either way, it will take you to my post that lists all the models, how much they cost retail, their differences and what I think of them and where you can buy all of these models.

All of this will help you choose which slide file will be perfect for you and your collection. I’m actually really happy I never found those little white cardboard boxes.

So I hope that you enjoyed this video. If you just started scanning your collection or if you need help with any of your photos, check out my website at ScanYourEntireLife.com and I would encourage you to sign up for my newsletter.

Take care. Cheers!

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First, let me point out that I love how in this video, my Dad and I are both drinking a glass of V-8 vegetable juice! Too funny. You can't get much more “father and son” than that — unless we were playing catch in the backyard. (If you missed it, it's at 1:43 into the video)

I was pretty thorough in this almost 5 minute review video, but there were some things I left out because the video was getting too long, that I would like to mention here.

Logan Slide File Model #200

The model I bought and specifically reviewed in this video is the Logan Slide File model #200.

I chose this model because it held the most for its size — 750 2″x2″ 35mm slides, I could have rows without any kind of divider, and it was single layered. (More on that later)

Dividers

My first reaction to the dividers when I picked up a sheet of them was, “Really? The outside is steel but then you make us use cheap cardboard to divide up our slides!? Why not a really nice piece of lightly textured plastic or even a beautifully finished thin piece of wood?”

But, then it occurred to me the reason they went with cardboard was so that you could easily write on the top tabbed part with any type of pen you owned. If they went with plastic, you would for sure need a good permanent marker — like a Sharpie.

But then I put a divider into one of the pre-cut slots in the steel frame and then added a bunch of slides. I quickly realized this might not be the case.

Usually when you think of tabs like these, you would assume they would stick up high enough to be able to write a short bit of information out on them and still be able to read them from above the tops of the slides.

However, I noticed these stick up less than you would expect or even want. Writing would be illegible with my slide collection. Maybe my cardboard mounts are unusually high compared to other varieties.

Possible Placement Problems

There are 6 rows to place slides inside of each Slide File box. Each row has 4 evenly spaced pre-cut slots so that you can drop in up to 24 of their included cardboard dividers.

Because both sides of each divider sticks into the slot ever so slightly, it provides support to keep a set of slides from within from pushing it over. You just might love this freedom to add and subtract dividers as you wish — it's very nice!

But a possible disadvantage for you will be that you are forced into their pre-determined spacing.

This could be a problem if you want to put just a small set of 5-10 slides in for example because they will more than likely just fall over due to the excess amount of space between the two dividers.

I'm not sure what the perfect solution would be to make 100% of people happy. I think possibly having a total of 8-10 slots per row could close the gap a bit. (pun intended)

Make Your Own Dividers

There is certainly nothing that would stop you from making your own dividers if you were handy with a piece of cardboard and scissors.

And you could make yours just a tiny bit higher so that you could easily see your handwriting at the top.

I tried this with an old one-sided business card. I cut it down to 2 ¼ inches high. This was just high enough so I could read the writing at the top but low enough that it appears to clear the lid as it comes down on top.

And the width is narrow enough you can stick it in anywhere in a dense row of slides you would like. The thickness of the business card barely uses up any space, so you have room to stuff the maximum amount of slides in there!

Additional Logan Slide File Models

As I mentioned near the end of the video, the company Logan Electric does offer 4 models of their Slide File line. They are all very similar in craftsmanship and dimensions, but they each carry a couple unique traits that you should probably be aware of if you are thinking about getting one or more for your collection.

And let me just say, it can get confusing if you try and figure out the labeling. So if this becomes important to you along the way, here's some background information so you don't think you've gone insane when you run into this:

Smith-Victor has been making these photo slide boxes for a long time now. In December of 2005, they acquired Logan Electric who also makes photography products. Since then, they have integrated both lines together.

Confusingly, the Slide Files are now labeled on the outside of the boxes as being made by “Logan Electric”, but they are still being displayed on Smith-Victor's website but as Logan Electric products. You won't find Smith-Victor written anywhere on the packaging — at least, I couldn't.

Anyway, here's a chart that quickly summarizes the differences I've found in the Logan Electric line. Below I explain in more detail.

Logan Slide File Models Available
Models	110	200	215	1500G
Image
Part #	750504	750523	750542	750561
Slides Held	300	750	750	1500
Storage Method	All metal individual slots	Movable cardboard dividers	Groups of 25	Groups in “double decker” design
Size	7 1/2” x 14 1/2” x 2”	7 1/2” x 14 1/2” x 2”	7 1/2” x 14 1/2” x 2”	7 1/2” x 14 1/2” x 4 1/2”
Weight	NA	NA	2.95 lbs.	NA
Features consistent across entire line
Slide Type	2″x2″	2″x2″	2″x2″	2″x2″
Color Choice	Blue	Blue	Blue	Blue
Material	High grade steel	High grade steel	High grade steel	High grade steel
Finish	durable baked enamel	durable baked enamel	durable baked enamel	durable baked enamel
Quality	Archival	Archival	Archival	Archival
Manufactured	Bartlett, IL USA	Bartlett, IL USA	Bartlett, IL USA	Bartlett, IL USA
Cheapest places to buy
Est. Retail	$29.99	$29.99	$29.99	$49.99
Amazon	NA	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price
B&H Photo	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price
Adorama	NA	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price

Differences in Models

Model #110

These are the cheapest boxes in the line and therefore hold the least — merely 300 slides. They're great for small collections, especially if you like the idea of having an individual cut out slot for each of your slides.

The downside is you have no official dividers if you want to organize in groups. You could make your own (see above) of course, and stick them in a slot where a slide was intended to go. And since there are no dividers, you won't be receiving the paper insert that included in the other models to mark what events are in your groupings.

I am having a hard time finding the #110 in stock anywhere. It makes me wonder if they are discontinuing this model.

Model #200

For the same retail price, you can store up to 450 more slides in this model because they have made additional room by removing the individual slide slots. Instead, you are free to place entire rows of slides (touching each other) without any requirement of separation.

If you want any extra separation, they have included 24 punched-out cardboard dividers that you can place in 24 pre-cut out slots along the 6 inner railings to create small groups.

Model #215

This model is very close to the #200. Instead of having the option of placing 24 individual cardboard dividers into designated slots, you get a thin plastic tray inside that has been divided up for you in 25 groups. (This tray appears to be black in some product photos, but other times a yellow color)

Also, the handle on the outside front is not a metal squared off loop like the #110 and #200. It's a white rubbery (possibly plastic now) carrying handle reminiscent in the “classic” Smith-Victor” line. (In my video, I show my Dad's old Smith-Victor slide box and this has the same handle)

Model #1500G

For a $20 bump up in price, you can have this model that stores twice as many slides — 1500. I guess that's why they named it the 1500G. (But then why aren't the others called the #300, #750A, and #750B?)

The dimensions of the case is exactly the same as the others, except instead of being 2 inches high, it's 4 ½ inches. This added height allows them to add a separate steel tray inside that comes out. They call this their “Double Decker Slide File.” (These trays appears to be black in some product photos, but other times a yellow color)

It's easy to miss in the photo, but additionally, the front of the case folds down like a flap to make it easier to access the tray inside.

Though I haven't seen one in person to be sure — you can't see in any of the photos I've seen so far — unlike the other models, there is a carrying handle riveted to the outside center on top of the lid. This would seemingly make it convenient to carry around the additional weight more like you would a fisherman's tackle box.

The downside I can only assume, is that would make it difficult to stack more than one of these on top of each other (if that's your intention) and have them lie flat without leaving them in their cardboard shipping container box.

Cheapest Places to Buy

I did a lot of searching around before I bought mine to find reliable places that would ship to my door, and have the lowest prices. Here is that list — I ended up buying from B&H Photo.

Disclaimer: The links in this article are affiliate links. It won't cost you any more money, but if you end up buying through them, I will earn a small commission paid for by the retailer. The best and cheapest places I found these Logan Slide files happen to be companies that offer an affiliate program. These companies are awesome and I order from them regularly.

If you choose to buy through them, please email and let me know. I would love to personally thank you for your gracious support.

Cheers!

Logan Slide File Models Available
Models	110	200	215	1500G
Image
Est. Retail	$29.99	$29.99	$29.99	$49.99
Amazon	NA	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price
B&H Photo	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price
Adorama	NA	Check Price	Check Price	Check Price